Exit interviews vital

HIGH employee turnover is costing Australian organisations millions of dollars extra every year, according to a white paper recently released by international recruitment company Drake International.

Drake estimates organisations lose between 30 and 200 per cent of their annual salary because of departing employees. 

Drake Learning and Development manager Angela Kelly said with average organisational staff turnover currently at 11 per cent, the cost of re-hiring, re-training and re-orientating new staff was crippling Australian businesses. She said businesses could combat the problem of high turnover by conducting formal, independent exit interviews.

According to Drake’s white paper, Exit Interviews – How Impartial Assessments Can Improve Staff Retention, exit interviews hinge on whether information about the departing employee is collected properly and channelled back into the business, rather than filed and forgotten.

Australian Human Resources Institute (AHRI) Executive Director Jo Mithen said experienced HR managers were the best-qualified people to conduct exit interviews. If this option was not available, she said, the function should be outsourced to a professional consultant – a much better option than giving the task to an inexperienced line manager.

“Overall, the outcome is better for business as employees are more inclined to speak openly and honestly when objective parties are involved.”